Truth of the Heart
by LyraPendragon13
Summary: Kikyo uses brute force to reveal the truth in Inuyasha's heart, but did she get the answer she wanted?


Just found this tidbit on my computer, its been around for a while so I thought I'd share it. It doesn't have anything to do with my main Inuyasha story, but the writing itself is quality work (even if I do say so myself). It would be a two shot if this first piece receives enough praise (so please review!). I do not own Inuyasha. Hope you enjoy!

oOoOoOo

Kagome's heart gave another pulse of pain as she poked disinterestedly at the fire. It had happened again. InuYasha was off chasing after Kikyo's soul collectors. She'd never stop him of course, but there was always that bleak worry in her heart that Inuyasha would not return. Every time Kagome compared herself to her earlier incarnation, she felt herself lacking. Kikyo was so much smarter and reserved. Kikyo carried a quiet peace around with her wherever she went, not to mention, she was a crack shot with a bow, had completed her miko training and of course Kagome could not help but compare one last thing. Kikyo had a fragile quiet beauty about her, like a porcelain doll, her rich brown eyes deep with sorrow and mysterious wisdom.

She herself had raw, untamed power that only ever seemed to kick in at the very last second to save all their buts. Barriers were difficult, and her knowledge of basic everyday spells was sorely lacking. The only type of arrow she could fire was the purifying kind, and that was mostly based on instinct and nothing certain. Not to mention, her aim was poor. She usually needed to fire once first so that her second shot was true. As for her own looks, Kagome had never thought herself special. She was just a japanese girl with average black hair and mud brown eyes. Nothing special about that...

The girl startled as the fire gave a violent pop, throwing countless sparks up into the night time darkness. Miroku turned in his sleep with a quiet hum, his hand reaching blindly for Sango, who lie next to him. Kagome was mildly surprised when that grouping hand found the demonslayer's hair and caught a lock, his fingers curling gently around his prize. He was quiet again, appeased by that innocent contact.

The two of them had tried their best to coax her into lying down, but Kagome had refused with the knowledge that she would be kept awake by Inuyasha's absence. It didn't feel right, not having his warm youki brushing against her awareness. Even Shippo's sleep was restless, his more chaotic youki flaring out, as if seeking Inuyasha's. It was almost sunrise at this point, Kagome realized as she watched the eastern horizon gain a faintly rosy hue. Inuyasha was usually back by now. Her already present worries began to grow and she stood up, pacing restlessly around the camp, stretching out her senses, checking for the missing hanyou and any hidden dangers. She found neither, but the nearness of Kikyo's shinidamachu took her by surprise, and they were getting closer.

"Mew," Kilala said, startling her.

Kagome looked down at the two tailed cat. "You feel it too Kilala?" Kagome whispered, kneeling down to pet the feline. Kilala purred for a bit, but then gently nudged her hand away and looked out into the forest where they could sense the white snake like spirits that had become Kikyo's trademark sign.

"You think I should go see what's going on?" Kagome asked the cat in surprise.

Kilala looked up again, her tails waving briefly as she purred in response. If there was one thing Kagome had learned, it was to trust the little cat's instincts. "You'll keep watch?" Kagome asked.

The little cat blinked once slowly.

Kagome stood up as she made her decision. Gathering her bow and quiver, she set out quietly into the woods grateful for the ample light of the full moon.

Guilt pricked at her a little at the thought of intruding on Kikyo and Inuyasha's privacy, but a sense of unease overrode her inhibitions. There was no explaining the heaviness in her heart telling her that Inuyasha was in danger somehow. This sense of urgency quickened her pace and it was not long before she started to hear the soft soughing of the soul collectors as they wove through the darkened trees. Kagome startled a bit when one of them glided serenely into view form over her shoulder. The spirit turned in a lazy circle and began patrolling around her.

'It's not trying to stop me,' Kagome thought warily. 'Does Kikyo _want_ me to show up?'

Dread, thick and heavy pooled in her belly like mercury. This was not the first time that Kikyo taunted Kagome using her relationship with Inuyasha. What would she see this time? Something heartbreaking no doubt, but Kagome resolved to let it pass over her like water on an oiled surface. There was nothing Kikyo could do to make her love Inuyasha less. It was an understanding she'd come to long ago. Her heart was set on Inuyasha, even if it meant letting him go, in the end.

That is when she saw the jagged shadow of claw marks on a tree. She'd seen that very thing so many times that she knew exactly who had caused them. She paused to trace the marks with her fingers finding the cuts to be clean and fresh. There was no doubt. That mark belonged to Inuyasha. Did they run into some trouble? An unexpected demon attack perhaps? Kagome cast about, finding more evidence of a struggle in the churned up soil and bruised undergrowth. Looked like it was quite a scuffle, but she was relieved to not find any traces of blood. She could be mistaken of course, it was a bit difficult to tell from just the moonlight.

What could have attacked them though? Kagome sensed no lingering youki, but that might just mean Kikyo had already purified it. 'I just hope Inuyasha's alright,' Kagome thought and moved on, entering a particularly thick cluster of trees, where the moonlight was reluctant to go. Perhaps it was the atmosphere of darkness, or maybe it was the haunting presence of the shinidamachu, but Kagome's apprehension continued to climb and the feeling was quickly becoming fear. Shadows seemed to shift and move in the edges of her vision and the night time forest had grown utterly silent. It was difficult now to place one foot in front of the other.

'Am I so afraid of what I'll see when I find them?' Kagome ask her self. 'Why am I so scared?' She placed a hand over her wildly beating heart, trying in vain to will it to slow and calm. At last she stumbled free of the thicket, hardly noticing that the bushes had left her the parting gift of a long scratch on her shin. The scene she came upon chilled her blood to ice and sucked the air from her lungs in a terrified gasp.

Inuyasha hung limp suspended in the air, held in place by Kikyo's soul collectors.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome shouted and immediately knew something was dreadfully wrong when his ears did not even twitch. She ran to him then, heedless that any traps might be in place. His head was bowed forward but Kagome still had to look up to see his face. His eyes were glazed with pain, with tear tracks streaming down his cheeks and he did not seem to be aware of his surroundings.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome called. "Wake up! Its just a spell!"

She reached up to touch his face, to wipe away those tears that were so out of place on him, but her fingers encountered a barrier.

"So, my copy has arrived."

Kagome whirled to see Kikyo lounging on a branch in a nearby tree. This was her doing! The tears, the utter anguish on Inuyasha's face, it was all because of her!

"Why are you doing this?!" she shouted. "Please, you've got to let him go!"

Kikyo gazed dispassionately at her. "You are such a foolish little girl," the dead priestess said gently, as if it were more an observation than an attack on her person-hood.

Kagome stomped her foot, her hands curling into fists at her sides. "You're hurting him!"

"He hurt me first!" Kikyo shouted with sudden violence, and her expression took on an ugly angry cast. She leaned back against the bole of the tree and seemed to calm herself for a moment her face returning to her usual serene mask. "You know nothing of my relationship with Inuyasha," she stated suddenly. "And yet you have fixed yourself to come between us."

Kagome stared at Kikyo in shock. "You're hurting him because you're insecure about him spending time with me?" she exclaimed. "He loves _you_ , I'm nothing to him!"

Kikyo's expression hardened. "What makes you believe that?"

Kagome nearly sank to her knees with the wave of pain that simple question brought. Here she was convincing her love rival that the love of her life loved the other woman.

"Isn't it obvious?" Kagome asked her incredulously, hoping she would not have to spell out the painful details.

"Why you should think that is a mystery to me," Kikyo said quietly. "So please, do your best to make it plain."

Kagome turned away from her previous incarnation, the sight of Inuyasha in so much pain made her own agony more bearable. Perhaps, if she said the right thing, Kikyo would stop this madness.

"He loves you," Kagome whispered.

"You're explanation will do me no good if I cannot hear a word you are saying," Kikyo said in a flat tone, and Kagome got the impression that the clay doll was scoffing at her. It made her angry, and anger was good. Anger loosened her tongue, made it easier to say what was in her heart.

Kagome whirled around and raised her head to look at Kikyo. She might as well go to her death with pride.

"He loves you," Kagome said. "I can tell. Even though you tried to kill him, and more than once! He still comes back to you! Even though you're torturing him now, if you called him back again, he would still come. You even attacked me, but he still wont tolerate anyone speaking ill of you! You have vowed to kill him and he'd go willingly if he just got your approval! I've stayed with him so far because he's allowed me to, but the moment you ask him to choose, he'll forget about me. He won't even hesitate! But that's okay, as long as he's happy in the end."

"You are truly convinced that he does not love you," Kikyo murmured. "And yet you stay with him. Stupid girl."

"I know," Kagome said. "I'll leave the moment he doesn't need me anymore. I promise! Just please let him go! Stop hurting him!"

"Do you want to know why I have him under my spell?" Kikyo asked.

Kagome blinked at the sudden subject change. "That doesn't matter!" she said. "Please let him go! He's in so much pain. I've never seen him like this! It _hurts_ to see him like this!"

Kagome turned to Inuyasha again and almost could not stop herself from striking at the barrier that kept her from him. The urge to throw her arms around him and call him back from this agony was a physical ache inside her heart. He looked so defeated. She needed to tell him that everything would be okay. She needed to bring back the spark of his indomitable spirit to those dead eyes.

"I cannot trust your word," Kikyo said, her voice suddenly sounding much closer.

Kagome turned again to see Kikyo standing not five feet away her red and white clothes glowing softly in the growing light. When had she gotten down from the tree?

"You would say whatever it took to deliver Inuyasha from this pain," the doll continued. "That is why I have him in this spell. I will open up his soul and see for myself what he feels about each of us."

Kagome stared at Kikyo in shock and horror. "B-but you can't!"

"Can't I?" Kikyo challenged. "It is perfectly within my abilities."

"That's not what I meant!" Kagome shouted frantically. "You can't just go digging through his personal feelings and thoughts! Those should be given voluntarily, not just taken by force! Can't you just trust that he'll open up to you when he's ready!?"

"Aren't you the least bit curious to know which of us he loves more?" Kikyo asked.

"I already know that answer!" Kagome shouted furiously. "I'm not gonna help you violate his heart!"

"And if it turns out that he loves you?" Kikyo asked.

"Even if he does," Kagome said. "Even if he never told me, I'd never forgive myself for intruding on something so personal to him."

"Fine!" Kikyo shouted her mask cracking again. "Continue to suffer under your ignorance if you wish! You little fool!"

The shinidamachu converged suddenly, all moving into the little clearing. They began to circle, vertically to the ground creating a round window between the two women. Kagome noticed a white mist gathering inside the opening like a vortex as the serpents gathered speed. Images began flickering to life before her eyes, and Kagome gasped as she realized that these were Inuyasha's memories! She turned away just as Kikyo reached out a small white hand and touched the mist. All the things going on behind her ceased to matter however as she laid eyes on Inuyasha.

There was a soul collector perched on his chest and judging by the soft glow, it was drawing out his soul. A wispy streamer trailed off behind her to the window, that was probably how Kikyo was able to access his emotions and memories. Then Kagome saw his face. His head was thrown back, eyes wide in agony, and his mouth was open but he made no noise. It was as if he wanted to scream, but it simply would not leave his chest... which was not moving. He wasn't breathing!

'I have to stop this!' Kagome thought, panicked. His lips were beginning to turn blue, and there was a fine tremor starting in his shoulders. She could not touch him and her powers were useless against the barrier of another priestess. So how...? Then her eyes landed on the kotodama. The word flew from her lips without a second thought.

"SIT!"

The result was instantaneous. Inuyasha was dragged harshly and swiftly to the ground, very effectively squashing the white serpent that had been drawing out his soul. The bright trailer slammed back into his body, and Kagome breathed a sigh of relief. The barrier flickered and died allowing her to rush to his side. She turned him onto his back to find that he was out cold, his eyes shut tightly, but his chest was heaving as he breathed again.

"You witch!" Kikyo shrieked.

Kagome jerked her head up to look at the clay doll in shock and got an even greater surprise. Kikyo stood there, her whole body quivering with rage, but the murder in her eyes was accompanied by tears. Why was she crying? Kagome almost asked her what was wrong, but stilled in shock when she heard a familiar war cry.

"Hiraikotsu!"

The bone boomerang came crashing into the clearing, breaking tree limbs and snuffing out several soul collectors, forcing Kikyo to back off or be hit. Kilala charged into the clearing with a roar placing herself protectively between the two priestesses. "Make another move and I'll grind your body back into dust!" Sango yelled harshly.

"You are outnumbered Kikyo," Miroku said quietly, advancing from the opposite side of the clearing. "Perhaps it would be prudent to retreat for now. Inuyasha may not have the heart to strike at you, but Sango and I will not hesitate."

Kikyo backed up a few steps, a look of defeat softened her expression just before she vanished, and the shinidamachu scattered, leaving no clue as to her direction. Sango and Miroku both relaxed a bit, then turned to their friends.

Kagome was leaning over Inuyasha stroking the hair out of his face as he began to stir.

"He's coming to," Miroku said kneeling quickly down on the other side of him.

"Was he... crying?" Sango asked, shocked.

"Kikyo had him under some kind of spell," Kagome explained, not taking her eyes off of Inuyasha for a moment, continuing to stroke his forehead. "I'm not sure what it did, and getting Inuyasha to talk about it might be impossible."

"It must have been bad," Miroku said with undisguised worry. "He's as white as a sheet."

Inuyasha's eyes flew open just then and he cried out in fear. "Kagome!"

"I'm right here!" she said quickly, doing her best to reassure him.

His panicked golden eyes focused on her and he moved abruptly, throwing himself at the startled girl.

"Kagome!" he yelled again, flinging his arms around her. "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please forgive me! Please don't leave me!"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome called softly, bringing her own arms around to hold him. His whole body shook with fine tremors and his ears were laid back. "Its alright, I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."

Inuyasha's breath was coming in quick panicked gasps and he ran his hands over her body as if frantically searching for something. "Are you hurt?" he managed to ask.

He was checking for wounds, Kagome realized. "I'm fine," she told him, trying to capture his hands and still them.

"But I smell blood!" he said, his nose working overtime, and Kagome realized that he was in danger of hyperventilating.

"Its just a scratch," she said raising her knee so he could inspect her shin. "I got it from the bush over there."

Inuyasha's golden eyes fixed on the tiny wound and gave it a cautious sniff, then raised his claws to his nose and sniffed them as well.

"I didn't do this," he said in a quiet rush. "I didn't do it. I didn't! I would never! But he-!"

Kagome grabbed his hands, pressing the palms together between her own. "Inuyasha," she said and was relieved when she instantly had his attention. "You need to calm down," she told him gently. "You're breathing too fast."

Inuyasha looked down at himself and only then seemed to notice how completely out of control he was. He jerked back, away from her. "Kagome!" he sobbed out putting a hand to his chest. "I can't-!"

Kagome moved closer to him, reaching for his hunched, shaking, shoulders, but he shied away again.

"Inuyasha, its okay!" she said, her mind racing for the words she needed to calm him down. He was going to fall into shock at this rate. "Whatever you saw! Whatever that spell made you see, it wasn't real! It didn't happen!"

Inuyasha continued to struggle, scrambling on his back to get away from her, but his shaking arms would not cooperate and he could not get far before he collapsed again. Then he just lay on his back staring sightlessly up at the sky, eyes glazed with terror and pain. Kagome moved closer again, grabbing his hand, and she looked down in surprise. His hands usually so warm and dry, were as cold as ice and slightly clammy. When she reached to put a hand on his forehead, she found the same damp icy skin.

She turned to her shocked companions. "Get my bag!" she said. "And all the blankets! Hurry!"

Kagome turned back to Inuyasha, dimly aware of Sango taking off with Kilala.

"Is he going to be okay, Kagome?" Shippo asked, tugging at her sleeve.

"I don't know," Kagome said as she absently worked at warming the shivering half demon's hand.

"Is this the result of that spell Kikyo had him under?" Miroku asked taking note of the way Inuyasha flinched at the name.

"Yes and no," Kagome said placing a hand on Inuyasha's heaving chest, worrying at the way his breath was beginning to rasp in his throat. His heart hammered in his chest, but not at all rhythmically.

"What do you mean?" the monk asked and Kagome could hear the mounting stress in his voice. It was killing him, seeing his friend in this state with no way to help him.

"Kikyo's initial spell is completely broken," Kagome said. "Its what he saw while under the spell that has him so panicked."

Just then, Kilala touched down in the clearing, and Sango leaped from her back carrying all their supplies on her shoulder. Kagome immediately grabbed her large yellow back pack and tugged it over to Inuyasha's feet. She lifted his legs with one arm and pushed the bag into place beneath them, letting his feet rest on top so that they were elevated. She came back up near his head again, grabbing a blanket.

"Lift him up so I can get this underneath him," she said, appreciating how her friends followed her directions without question. Together they managed to get him on top of the cloth, insulating him against the cold ground. Kagome spread the rest of the blankets on top of him, pulling them up to his chin.

"Some one light a fire?" she asked as she bent over Inuyasha, trying to gauge if there was any reaction.

Miroku immediately moved to do as she asked, gathering dead fall timber. With help from Shippo's fox fire, they soon had a roaring flame going. Through this Inuyasha continued to lay there, unresponsive. It was like his mind had shut down and the panick and fear were the only things left.

Kagome sat near him, stroking his forehead, feeling useless now that they'd done everything they could for him at the moment. There had to be something else she could do. After a moments thought, Kagome gave up and acted on instinct. She toed off her brown loafers and slipped under the blankets, laying down so that her body was pressed against Inuyasha's. A moment of squirming later and she settled on her side, one arm cradling his head and shoulders, the other resting lightly on his chest. She was surprised and slightly relieved when he moved suddenly, putting his arms around her and pulling her firmly against his hard chest. She bit back a squeak however, when his cold nose found her neck as he buried his face into the crook of her shoulder. He took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before releasing it and doing it again.

'He's smelling me,' Kagome thought, almost dumbfounded. 'When did my smell become such a comfort to him?'

As they lay there together, his frantic heartbeat and desperate breathing calmed, and Kagome could not help but smile at his soft, breathy sighs of relief. He did not really stop moving in this down time, his arms kept changing position, alternately holding her close and smoothing over her body. Under other circumstances, the intimate contact would have had her blushing, but such thoughts were far from her mind. In the moment, Kagome knew without a doubt, that Inuyasha needed the comfort of knowing she was alive and well. His touch was centered on her left shoulder, and he touched her repeatedly on that spot searching again and again for something that he did not find, and judging by his contented sighs, this was a good thing.

A good few hours passed in this manner and finally Kagome watched his ears twitch and, felt the slight tickle as Inuyasha opened his eyes at last. His body remained soft and relaxed for a few moments, but slowly, to Kagome's disappointment, the tension returned.

Inuyasha raised his head and met her eyes, pausing to gauge the emotions he found. His own eyes were a dizzying mix of dread, guilt, self disgust and anxiety. He sat up and she let him go knowing he would need space. There was silence as he looked around the clearing, reorienting himself. Miroku was sitting cross legged in the grass, hands on his knees and eyes closed as he meditated. Sango was not far away, seated on a rock dressed in her traveling clothes, sharpening her wakizashi. Kilala was batting playfully at the long grass Shippo was waving at her. It was a normal enough scene for the group, peaceful even compared to their usual banter, but the companionable silence was not uncommon. Inuyasha closed his eyes briefly and seemed to brace himself, then he opened his mouth.

"Where's Kikyo?" he asked quietly.

All attention suddenly centered on the two of them, and Kagome almost giggled at the way his ears gave away a nervous tick.

"Do you know what happened?" she asked. "This might be easier to explain if you tell me what you know first."

Inuyasha immediately leaned back from her, his eyes brightening with panic.

"Sorry," Kagome said quickly. "I'm only talking about the surrounding circumstances, you don't have to tell me what the spell made you see."

He gave a little flinch at the word spell, but he visibly calmed himself and stayed still. "When I first got here, Kikyo was acting weird," Inuyasha began. "It was almost like she was afraid. She was pacing back and forth and didn't even act like I was there for a bit. Then she stopped and looked right at me."

"Did she say anything?" Miroku asked quietly without opening his eyes.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said with a faint nod. "I'm still not sure if I understand it though."

"Perhaps another set of ears may find something of significance," Miroku said softly. He got up slowly, his motions calm and measured, and he came over to sit near them, gently including himself in the conversation. "If her words do not seem of too much consequence, do you mind sharing them with us?"

Inuyasha crossed his arms and resettled himself so he was sitting cross legged. The normal posture did much to put Kagome at ease.

"I guess its worth a shot," Inuyasha said. "She asked me me if I knew who I was looking at, and then she said that hearts were fickle things and that it didn't matter cause she'd know soon enough anyway."

No one missed how Kagome went pale. They were all looking at her now in concern.

"Kagome?" Inuyasha asked softly. "What did she say to you?"

"Keep going," Kagome said waving a hand. "I'll tell you in a minute."

Inuyasha started to glare at her, but she put a hand on his knee, before he could say anything. "I promise I'll tell you everything, but its just not relevant yet."

"Fine," he said, though his usual brusque manner was missing. "But if I even think you're lying, you won't be going home for a whole month."

"I won't lie," Kagome said. "But I need to know what happened next."

Inuyasha sighed heavily and looked away. "The shinidamachu attacked me."

There were several simultaneous exclamations of: "What?!"

"Truly?" Miroku asked. "I thought they were generally peaceful creatures..."

"Not always," Kagome said. "She's used them to tie me up before."

"Me too," Shippo piped up. "That was the second day after Inuyasha got hit by the windscar."

"I'm sorry Shippo," Kagome said pulling the tyke into her lap and stroking his hair. "I bet you were scared, they didn't hurt you?"

"No," Shippo said lightly. "They seemed more interested in making sure I couldn't get Inuyasha's attention or try to follow him."

"Come to think of it," Inuyasha said thoughtfully. "Those snakes didn't try to hurt me either. They only tried to tie me up, and it only worked because Kikyo was getting in the way of my swings. Then she said my greatest fear would reveal the truth of my heart, whatever that means." His voice shook a little on 'greatest fear,' Kagome noticed. There was sweat beading on his forehead, and she was pretty sure it wasn't because of the fire, it had burned down considerably and was little more than smoking ashes at this point. "She touched my forehead and-." Inuyasha's voice faltered and quit.

"You don't have to say anything more," Kagome told him. "I think I can pick things up from here."

Kagome quickly went over how she had found him and though it tore her heart a little, she told them of her confrontation with Kikyo, and how she had tried to reassure the undead priestess of Inuyasha's love. Inuyasha looked more than a little shocked about the latter, but he was infinitely more relieved to hear that Kagome had refused to see what was in his soul.

"I'm glad you didn't see, Kagome," Inuyasha said, that slight waver in his voice as he spoke. "Kikyo probably did see it though."

"Whatever she saw," Kagome said quietly. "It made her cry."

There was no surprise on Inuyasha's face. He merely nodded, which surprised everyone else. "That must have terrified her..." His eyes seemed to glaze over for an instant, but he shook himself violently.

"She wasn't just crying," Sango said, weighing in on the group discussion. "It looked like she was angry enough to strike you Kagome. That's were the monk and I came in. Kilala brought us as soon as we were awake. I got there in time to see you free Inuyasha from the shinidamachu."

"We did not attack her directly," Miroku said. "We merely presented enough of a threat to force her to retreat."

Inuyasha nodded, then turned to Kagome. "I'm sorry she said all that stuff to you, Kagome," he said. "She had no right. Now come on, we've lost enough time as it is."

They packed up camp after that, and no one was willing to bring up what happened. It was a wordless agreement. The events had been unpleasant and better left unmentioned until there was some distance. That was not to say they would forget and let down their guard. Inuyasha especially was slightly heart broken as he admitted to himself that Kikyo was a threat to not only his life, but to Kagome's as well. Could this really be the Kikyo he had come to love?


End file.
